1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a keyboard, and more particularly to a keyboard having a touch input device, which uses the touch input device to replace a part of keys on the keyboard, so as to provide both keyboard input and touch input functions without increasing the size of the keyboard.
2. Related Art
With the progress of technologies, various computer-related devices become available in the modern life, among which personalized computer-related devices become indispensable for modern people in their daily lives. Taking personal computers as an example, with the advent of the information age and proliferation of networks, nowadays, people's demand on the retrieving, processing, and use of various types of information also grows rapidly.
Considering the manipulation and use of a computer, the most commonly used conventional devices are a keyboard and a mouse. At the very beginning, the keyboard and the mouse are both wired, that is, must be connected to a host of the computer through wires. Since the length of the wires is limited, the operation is inevitably restricted. In addition, besides the keyboard and the mouse, the host of the computer also needs to be connected to other related devices (for example, a power supply, a loudspeaker, and a screen) through wires, so that the wires often become entangled, resulting in a mess.
In order to alleviate the above disadvantages, with the development of wireless technologies, some manufacturers change the keyboard and the mouse into wireless ones. Thus, the problem in use caused by the wires is solved. However, two significant disadvantages are found for the wireless keyboard and wireless mouse in actual use.
Firstly, considering the space allocation, since the wireless keyboard and the wireless mouse are still two separate structures, a sufficient space must be provided to receive the two structures at the same time, so that a large space is inevitably occupied.
Secondly, considering the operation, when the wireless keyboard and the wireless mouse are two separate structures, a user has to change the hand in order to respectively manipulate the keyboard and the mouse, which results in inconveniences and constraints in use.
In addition, when the user intends to use the handwriting or gesture input mode, the input operation cannot be achieved by using the keyboard or the mouse. In this case, besides the keyboard and the mouse, other input devices (for example, a touch pad) are further required for implementing related input operations. However, the use of other input devices not only requires more space, but also brings trouble to the user in use.
In view of the above, in order to alleviate the disadvantages of the prior art and to integrate different input devices to achieve the maximum convenience in use while occupying the minimum space, the present invention is realized by the inventor through years of experience and continuous research and development and improvement.